Lexus Rise

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference” – Elie Weisel.

In a fiercely competitive automotive landscape, Lexus faced daunting opponents: A lack of salience and consumer connection.

The automotive industry is undergoing significant change with Government EV mandates, a cost-of-living crisis impacting new car purchase, and a rise in new brands transforming the landscape irreversibly. Lexus was struggling to cut through, with only 10% salience and a "grey bar of doom" indicating consumer indifference (71% neither hate or love Lexus). Consumers know Lexus manufacture cars, but when it comes to purchase, they were not top-of-mind. Lexus needed to stand out, to become a name that resonated with the public and one that ‘reflects who I am’.

The objective was clear: increase salience and make Lexus a beloved brand. Lexus acknowledged the need for greater focus on brand marketing, with sponsorship a key pillar, to stand out, differentiate, and inspire more emotion in both conquest and core audiences.

We identified an authentic cultural passion point to generate conversation around Lexus, that being tennis. The sport presents a significant integration opportunity for the brand, experiencing year-over-year growth in participants, fans, and attendees. Crucially, it aligns with Lexus's target audiences, boasting 29 million UK tennis fans and gender parity. Tennis offers a large-scale audience reach and drives salience; data shows tennis fans are 31% more likely to buy a car in the next 12 months.

Sky Sports' new tennis-only channel launching in 2024 presented a strong partnership opportunity, encompassing broadcast, digital, and social content. This engaged millions of tennis fans, across multiple platforms, growing Lexus’ association with the sport. This strategy follows recent agreements with the ATP Tour, LTA and UK tennis players Cam Norrie and Katie Boulter as ambassadors. Partnering Lexus and Sky Sports Tennis was an overarm smash on match point for both brands.